


SR: Next Generation Rewrite

by SeliBlitz



Category: Speed Racer: The Next Generation (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Blood and Violence, Constructive Criticism Welcome, Hurt/Comfort, Other, Racing, Some Swearing, mature themes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-15 22:41:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29071953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeliBlitz/pseuds/SeliBlitz
Summary: Warning for all that want to read this! This rewrite will have mature themes!Including: Swearing, Violence and Injury and other Adult Themes.Speed Racer: The Next Generation is originally a kids show. (However the original Speed Racer was more violent.) Viewer discretion is advised.The story follows a closed off teen named Stephen (nicknamed Speed) Racer from when he first arrives at the Racing Academy. From the day to day races, to the drama that forms and even near death experiences for the young student, Stephen keeps his head high and unbothered. Along with Lucy and Conor, Stephen... no, Speed will learn how to become the best in more ways than one.Small Note: The story does follow how the original show went and chapter 1 is basically a 1:1 with changes in personality, however there will be major changes along the way.CURRENTLY ON A BIG HIATUS (PLUS GETTING REWORKED)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 5





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to everyone who reads this! First of, thank you so much for deciding to read this. I recently found this show again and watched all 52 episodes, then got an intense motivation boost.  
> A few small notes; This story, as mentioned before, is a lot more mature than the original cartoon and Speed's character has been probably changed the most out of everyone. There is also the fact that most chapters can be around 6k words, so it will take some time to write and post (especially when school hits) I will try my best to keep a consistent schedule. 
> 
> Without further ado, enjoy the prologue and chapter 1!

"Here, we were told to give you this when you leave." 

That was the last thing he heard the woman tell him before he walked out the door. The woman handed the teen a simple red and white key and a dark red bandanna. He didn't bother looking back at the building, not even to say goodbye, since he didn't know anyone well enough, except for 1 girl who already left. That place called an Orphanage was a hellhole and he was glad it was finally over. 

He walked to the large bus stop, 1 bag on his back, 1 held. Several groups of people were huddled around, many waiting for specific routes. All of them were chattering and laughing, it was simple yet it bothered the teen. The teen noticed one bus, immediately going straight for it. The driver was looking at his phone, but looked up when the teen walked up.

"You have a ticket?" The teen simply gave him a ticket, the driver taking it. "All the way to the Academy, huh?" The teen simply nodded. "Alright, get on. I'm leaving in about 15 minutes." The teen climbed on, found a seat and put his bags onto the seat next to him to avoid having to talk to someone. The teen looked out the window, he was determined. 

And nothing was going to stop him.


	2. The Very Beginning

In a far-out desert, a grey bus slowly makes a stop near a metal gate, the orange sand dust slowly settling back onto the floor. The door slides open and a tall teen steps out, a grey backpack thrown on one shoulder and an athletic bag held in the other arm. The bus door slides back, closing, before slowly driving away, revealing a large building. The Racing Academy, the teen thinks to himself. He takes a moment to look at the building from afar, the tall window-covered tower in the middle reflecting the almost blinding sunlight, the other buildings, albeit shorter, followed the same theme. Squinting, the teen swore he could see a part of the racing track from his position. A big smile forming on his previous stoic face, the teen made sure no cars were coming, then rushed across the large road.

Reaching the gate, a screeching of tires made him stop and turn towards the source of the noise. A red car was speeding down the road, quickly arriving to his position, making a doughnut around him then stopping on his right. The teen hadn't reacted the entire time, but instead stood completely still. In the car sat 4 people, 2 blond twins one with a brown jacket and green hoodie and the other with the same jacket but in green and orange shirt sat in the back, a red haired girl with a light red dress shirt sat in the drivers seat and a guy with a giant x tattoo on his right arm sat next to the girl. The teen's expression quickly turned to neutral. Then the guy with the tattoo spoke first.

"Hey kid, what are you doing standing in the middle of the road?" The teen stayed neutral. He pointed towards the school.

"I was heading to-"

"Wait," The redhead stopped him. "Another noob." The teen tried not to roll his eyes, instead rising an eyebrow. Great, another brat, as if he didn't see enough of those at the orphanage.

"You need a lift?" The tattooed guy asked.

"I think I'm fine." He almost turned away. "Hold on. You're X, right? I've seen you race."

The teen stepped closer to the car, with zero intention of getting in, only for the girl to drive it a tad bit farther, the former needed to jump back to avoid getting his foot ran over.

"Oops, my bad." She said. The twins in the back started laughing hysterically.

"Hey, cool it Annalise." X turned to the teen. "What's your name?" The teen cocked his head slightly sideways.

"Stephen. Though some people call me Speed." He said, shrugging.

"Like Speed Racer? Yeah right." One of the twins chuckled, Annalise following.

"Maybe, maybe not, what's it to you, airhead?" Speed said.

"You're joking..." X said, half asking.

"It's a nickname. It doesn't bother me." He started to walk by the car. "Now I'll be on my way." Speed finished, continuing to walk towards the building. Annalise scoffed, then sped off in the same direction.

Standing in front of the tower, speed took a moment to appreciate how it looked from up close, a smirk forming. However, it quickly fell as he headed in through the automatic door, immediately seeing a crowd of students all around. He glanced around, then took a deep breath before starting to ask around, as stupid as it was.

"Excuse me-" He asked 1 person, but was ignored. "Hello?" A pair passed by. "Could you tell me where-" A 3rd person walked by him without answering. "Where Headmaster Spirtle's-"The continued failure continued for a good few minutes before the bell rung, all the student clearing out in a matter of second, leaving Speed standing stupidly in the middle of the now empty area. He groaned, "Fuck." kicking his bag lightly.

"Headmaster Spirtle's office is at the terminal building." A black girl ran by him, pausing and turning around. "Head South 500 feet, turn 30 degrees North for 200 feet and then make a sharp right-" Speed put up a hand.

"Wait, couldn't I just use those stairs there?" He asked, pointing towards some stairs. She shrugged.

"Sure if you don't mind going 8 seconds out of your way." The girl turned to run off, but something in him told him to introduce himself to the girl.

"Uh, thanks. I'm Stephen by the way, or Speed, whichever works for you." The girl paused.

"Did you say your name is Speed? Like Speed racer?" Speed crossed his arms.

"It's a nickname, but I guess." The girl smiled.

"Wow, that's an awesome name, or well, nickname. I'm Lucy, by the way. Good luck." She paused. "Oh have you seen a monkey around here?" Speed stared at her as if she grew an extra head, blinking a few times.

"Uh... no? I can keep an eye out." The girl looked at her wristwatch.

"Oh man, I got to run. I'm late for class." She started to run off. "And don't forget the 30 degree turn!" Speed simply waved, then picked up both of his bags from the floor, heading for the office.

\---

Up in the office, Headmaster Spritle was reading through Stephen's file, waiting for the teen to show up. He heard a woman say "He's expecting you, go right in." Using this as a cue, he closed the file and set it back onto the table, right when Speed knocked on the door.

"Come in." Spritle said. Speed opened the door, walked in and calmly closed it. His stoic expression didn't change.

"Headmaster Spritle, I'm-" Spritle interrupted him

"Stephen. Welcome to the Academy, have a seat, son." Speed pulled the chair out, and sat down.

"Um.. thank you, sir." Spritle smiled.

"So, tell me, Stephen. Why are you here?" Speed glanced away for a moment, thinking what to say. Spritle continued. "Every year a few hopeful racers step through that door, many don't make it past the first week. So, Stephen, what makes you any different?" Speed took a deep breath.

"I want to be the best, sir. The best in the world. I love to drive and consider myself good behind the wheel. " Spritle stood up, looking out the window.

"Pretty good doesn't last long around here." Speed didn't reply. "To succeed you need skill, determination." Speed's face broke a tiny smile. "And if you're lucky, some good friends to help you out." Speed's face fell back to stoic, as he stared down at the table. An ID slid into his view. "Here is your ID and dorm key for the student rooms." Speed picked up the ID, looking at the picture of himself, the picture itself showed his most recent look, brown medium length hair in a short ponytail, blue t-shirt with a star on each shoulder and a dark blue turtleneck underneath.

"There's a qualifying race, right?" Speed asked.

"Yes, there is. You should go drop off your things and get ready." Spritle sat down. "You see those 3?" He pointed at a photograph on the wall, showing X, Analise and those twins in 1st, 2nd and 3rd place respectively. "These are real racers, and our top students. And maybe one day, you'll be on there too." He smiled at Speed, who had a blank face, except for the stars in his eyes. Before Speed could speak, the phone on Spirtle's desk rang. The headmaster answered the call. "Yes?"

"Um... sorry to bother you, Headmaster. But we just got a complaint from Lucy that Connor's monkey Chim-Chim just stole her book bag again." A woman said. Speed rolled his eyes at the mental image of that.

"Tell security that they need to find it." Stated Spritle.

"Yes sir." She replied. Spritle cleared his throat.

"So. What car are you going to be driving?" Spritle asked, directed at Speed.

"Well you see... I don't-" A beep interrupted him.

"Uh, sir. The guards had it cornered but it stole one of their shoes and ran off." Spritle sighed.

"That's it, tell them I'm coming over as soon as I can."

"Headmaster Spritle? I don't actually have a car..." Speed stated. Spritle put a finger to his chin.

"There should be unused cars in the garages, usually for classes. You can borrow one until you figure something out. Now go get yourself sorted out and I'll see you at the track." Speed stood up, nodding once in conformation. "Good luck, son."

"Thank you, sir." Speed said, then left the room.

\---

Speed walked down the hall, trying to find his dorm. Soon enough, he found the right door and put his ID in front of the scanner. It beeped and the door opened. Speed entered, and as soon as he did, a teen with a helmet completely covered his entire eye sight. Speed jumped back, a hand ready to attack. The teen stood up straight.

"You're the new kid, right? I'm Conor. What's your name?" Recovering from his shock, Speed looked around Conor's side of the room, all the walls and shelves covered in speed racer merchandise, ranging from helmets, figures, car models, posters and even flags.

"Stephen, or Speed." He replied uncertainly.

"Speed! Like Speed Racer?" Conor asked.

"Yeah, nickname." Speed said dryly, sitting down on the opposite bed, both bags flopping to the floor.

"That's so cool. I'm a huge Speed fan." He stumbled. "I mean THE Speed Racer, not you, that would be weird. So don't creep out." Speed just stared at the obsessed fan.

"Okay..." Speed opened his bags, a red bandanna being the first thing he grabbed.

"Hey, I have the same racing bandanna as you." Speed looked down at the bandanna, then back at Conor."Speed Racer had one too. He's the man." Conor said, in slight awe.

"Uh-huh. Yeah..." Speed said with a dead tone as he wrapped and tied the bandanna around his left wrist.

"Nobody knows more about Speed Racer or the Mach 5 than I do." Conor pointed a finger at himself, smiling. "I can literally take it apart and put it back together blindfolded." He stopped "Or, well, I could if it still existed." He grabbed something small from a shelf. "I managed to recreate a small scale model." He opened his palm, revealing a comically small model of the Mach 5.

"That's interesting... and really small." Speed said, then continued unpacking.

"Oh! Did you know that X is Speed Racer's son?"

"Did you know you ask a lot of questions?" He looked back at Conor.

"Have you ever met him?" Speed sat down.

"You mean X? Yeah, met him outside the gates when I arrived. Hasn't Speed Racer been missing for several years now?"

"He's great! And yeah, he has been missing. Anyway, X is not as good as Speed Racer but better than anyone else at school. I guess you wanna be a racer too, huh?"

"Yeah... wanted to do so for a long while." He didn't go into detail. "Headmaster Spritle said I need to get ready for my qualify-"

"I crashed on my qualifier. Boom!" Conor interrupted, crossing his eyes and hands thrown to his sides to make his point clear. "I singed my eyebrows off." Speed stared in both confusion, fear and wonder. "I'm a TERRIBLE racer. But I'm one great mechanic," He laughed awkwardly. "That's the only reason I'm still here. So I'm guessing you have a great car, right?" Conor took off his helmet, revealing bright red hair.

"I... don't have a ride." Conor paused.

"What!" Speed flinched as Conor stood up. "How can you attend a racing academy without a race car? That's crazy."

"Long story that I don't want to get into. Spritle said that there are a few extra cars used for classes I could borrow for today."

"Alright, fine. But how could you not have a car!"

"I don't know!" Speed said, a little more harshly than he intended. Conor seemed taken back.

"You seem... stressed. Do you want to hold my Speed Racer doll?"

"Absolutely not." Speed replied, deadpan.

"Okay." The door opened, revealing a very angry Lucy.

"Conor!" Conor and Speed both looked at the girl. "Conor, that ridiculous monkey of yours stole my book bag again! Where is he?" Conor put up both hands in defense.

"I don't know! I swear!" Conor exclaimed.

"Not going to question how you lose sight of your own monkey," Speed turned to Lucy. "I heard Headmaster Spritle is helping look." Lucy blinked.

"It's you again. Stephen, right?"

"And you again." Speed replied, deadpan. "Welcome to my new home. Or, it will be when I unpack."

"Here's some advice," Lucy started. "Always put your socks in the top drawer, then your shirts, then pants, then-"

"Great Lucy," Conor interrupted. "Are you gonna tell him how to breathe next?" Lucy glared at him.

"You be quiet! I'm not talking to you until I get my book bag back!"

"Bonus!" Conor yelled back. Speed sighed loudly.

"Could you two little twits argue later? I'm going to go find a car." Speed stood between the two, stopping them from fighting, the two stared at him with a slight shock. "Spritle said that there are a few extra cars for classes. I'm guessing they are a lot worse quality quality but It'll have to work for now."

"Okay, I know where to look." Conor said, while Speed didn't want to bother the two, they didn't give him much choice, dragging him out of the room.

\---

The three stood in front of a giant metal statue of Speed Racer and the Mach 5, showing the man in an action pose, pointing towards the sky. "There he is." Conor said, half whispering.

"Huh." Speed bother saying anything. He was still annoyed that he was dragged by these two.

"Please don't think I'm weird. But sometimes I sneak out here at night and ask him for advice." Speed simply looked at Conor, puzzled. "Okay it does sound weird when I say it out loud."

"No shit..." Speed whispered. "Yeah... no that's a bit weird." He said, Lucy nodding.

"He's not really that tall by the way."

"Good to know." Speed replied, unfazed.

"You know he's Headmaster Spritle's older brother, right?"

"Seems Conor is talking to that stupid statue again." A pair of familiar twins walked up the the trio. The twin with a green hoodie having spoken.

"Stupid! Are you calling Speed Racer stupid?" He was angered. "Oh man, that's it. I'm gonna-" The same twin got up in his face.

"You're gonna do what?" Conor stepped back, bumping into Speed. He put a hand on the latter's shoulder, who had to physically stop himself from moving away from the touch.

"I'm going to think very bad thoughts about both of you, then head over to the track and watch my friend Speed here win his first race." Speed was taken aback by the friend title, but otherwise stood still. The twin laughed.

"Are you joking? This lame noob win? No way." The two started laughing.

Conor took the moment to look at Speed and saw him with crossed arms and murder in his eyes. Speed took 1 step, and was already on eye level face to face with the twin.

"We'll see. I had to deal with bastards like you for many years. Guess how many of them ran off?" The hoodie twin scoffed.

"Yeah right, you do realize you have as much of a chance to win as that statue!" He said, pointing at Speed Racer's statue before grabbing a stone from his pocket and throwing it at the metal. The rock bounced off and hit the other twin.

"Ow! Watch where you throw those rocks, Jered! You jerk!"

"I didn't throw it at you, Jesse!" Jared said, throwing another rock, only for it to do the same.

"Ow! I told you to quit it!" Jesse hit the other on the back of the head.

"Hey! Ow! I'm sorry!" Jared exclaimed as he ran off, Jesse on his heels.

"That was like watching 2 high hamsters discuss geography." Speed said.

"Alright, come on! Everything here moves fast, you gotta keep up or you'll spend your first year eating dust!" Speed put a hand to the back of his neck.

"I'll be fine. I just need a car."

"We'll get you a car. But don't expect much." Conor said. Speed mentally braced himself for the worst, but it couldn't really get any worse from this.  
  
\---  
  


Standing in front of a garage, Speed wasn't expecting much... but this was pathetic. The car itself was rusting and brown, with many metal panels glued and burned onto the stupid amount of damages. On the side the words "Lost Hero" were written, however the lettering was falling off, making the letters look like a failed attempt at using the Metallica font. "Well! There she is, your car!" Conor said with pride.

"That is the ugliest car I have ever seen." Lucy said flatly, embarrassed at what she saw. Comedic timing didn't fail, as the front bumper fell off right when she finished.

"I can work with this for now." Speed jogged up next to the car, grabbing a few tools on the way. He mentally scolded himself for getting into this situation.

"She'll run, for how long I have no clue." Conor shrugged. Speed lightly kicked the car near the bottom of the door, the rear bumper falling clean off.

"I really hope I won't need that." He said.

"Let me go get my super glue." Just as Conor left, the trunk of the car popped open, a white robot resembling a monkey popping out. Speed stepped back in surprise.

"What the hell?" He exclaimed as the monkey jumped out and ran off towards a corner.

"There you are! Where's my book bag?" Lucy ran after the robot.

"Chim-Chim! Give her the bag!" Conor told the monkey. However, the monkey didn't listen and instead jumped into a tower of tires. Lucy almost cornered him but was splashed by a small jet of water. The monkey jumped out, opened it's mouth and grabbed a bag, then throwing said bag towards Lucy.

"My algebra homework better be in here or I'm turning you into a calculator!" Lucy threatened. Chim-Chim bounced over to Conor and Speed, the latter still having a shocked expression.

"Speed, say hello to Chim-Chim!" Speed turned to Conor, silently asking if this is a joke, then turning back to the short robot.

"Uhm... Hi? Okay, why do you have a robot monkey?" Chim-Chim beeped.

"I made him. I wanted a real monkey but I'm allergic to animal hair." Conor said as if it's completely normal. Speed blinked a few times.

"You built him?" Speed asked, impressed.

"Enough monkey talk, Stephen needs to think about the race. Watch out for X, they put him on the track to give the new kids a hard time." Lucy stated. Speed put most of the tools down on a rolling platform, kept one and opened the hood of the car.

"I know. But... it's interesting!" He looked at the damage, frowning at the state.

"Huh?" Conor stared as he grabbed another tool and got to work.

"X and I at the same academy. He'll give me a hard time but it will only make me work harder." Speed looked outside the garage. "We will race together."

"You really are a fan. Are your parents into racing?" She asked. All happy thoughts that Speed had immediately crashed and burned, he froze, his face becoming dark. Both Conor and Lucy noticed the shift in mood.

"I... don't know my parents." Speed said. The two stayed silent, empathetic. Speed set down the wrench and tugged at his t-shirt collar, and grabbing a red and white key that was on a thick thread around his neck. "The only thing I know about my family is that my father left me this and a red bandanna... both were given to me before I left... the orphanage."

"How about we save story time for later, you three are supposed to be at the track." A tanned man stood outside the garage with a cold stare towards the trio.

"Uh-uh. Hello, Professor Aniskov." Conor stuttered.

"I take it this young man is Stephen."

"Yes, sir. That's me."

"Stephen, this is Professor Aniskov. He's the school's offensive driving instructor." Lucy stated.

"Where is your vehicle, young man?" Aniskov asked. Speed grimaced at the car that was in the garage.

"Right here... I guess." This time the rim fell off of the top right wheel.

"How... nice for you." Aniskov said, dryly but sarcastically.

"If it runs... I'll figure it out."

"Oh, she'll run alright." Conor tapped the top of the car, only for the mirror to break.

"I suggest you get moving." With that, Aniskov left the trio.

\---

Near the tracks, Speed was single-handedly pushing the car without much strain. On the hood sat Conor and Chim-Chim, who were both working hard to fix the engine to the best of their ability. Speed kept pushing the car through to the entrance, mentally cursing the entire time since this was, quite bluntly, very embarrassing. 

"You have a lot of strength, I'm not gonna lie." Conor commented.

"Eyes on the engine." Replied Speed. Entering the track, Speed stared in awe as the track was quite large. He stopped for a moment, standing back to take the sight in.

"Look!" A woman's voice cut his thoughts. "It's Speed-bump!" Annalise said, her and the twins laughing, meanwhile X only examined the scene.

"Go, Speed, go!" The two mocked.

"This is gonna be classic! Look at that junker." Meanwhile, Conor managed to fix up the engine, connecting one final piece as the engine roared to life. He immediately started coughing at the dust that was blown in his face.

"I fixed it up as much as I could, so I advise that you hurry."

"Will do, Conor." Speed put on a helmet, then looked back at Conor. "You did a good job." Speed sat down in the car, testing whether everything was intact. Wheel? Check. Brakes and acceleration? Check. Gear shift? Check. He took a deep breath, then drove off to join the rest of the cars on the track.

X was still staring at the kid, wondering how in the world that car is still functioning.

"X, my boy!" A older man with grey hair walked up to X. Next to him stood a broad bald man, who kept quiet. "How are you?"

"I'm good, Mr Zazic." X replied.

"I've asked you a million times you call me Zile." Zazic said,

"A man with your title deserves respect, Mr Zazic. After all, you built this track." X vaguely pointed at the entirety of the track.

"I didn't build it, X. I got it built for me, there's a difference. But you, as a Racer also deserve respect." Annalise and X exchanged looks.

"If you believe so sir, thanks."

"No, thank you for making these races so exciting!" Zazic boasted. "It's the reason I give so much to this school." Annalise stepped up.

"Hey, dad. Everyone knows X is great, but the race is about to start. Maybe you should go to your private box now."

"Ah, thank you, Honey, for reminding me. Come on, Stanford." The two started to walk off. "Get out there and show those new students what racing is all about!" He pointed a finger at X. "Only the strongest deserve to race on my track."

The cars lined up and over the loudspeaker, a man called out. "Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome the newest students!" The voice called out the different names from the new arrivals, making a small comment about Speed. "And setting the pace for out new students, the son of the legendary Speed Racer, X!" A black car with a gigantic X across the hood drove up next to Speed as the crowd cheered for X.

"I better not screw this up." Speed said to himself, eyes facing the road.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the world's most advanced racing training facility." Spritle's voice said from the speakers. "Known simply as 'The track'. For some of you, this is your first chance to race." The sounds of the engines revving filled the air. "Lose focus for a second, and you will fail. Good luck to you all."

The light above started to count down.

Three.

Two.

One.

Go!

All the cars quickly left the start line, X taking the lead, while Speed took last place. Speed pushed down on the acceleration, cramming himself between a green car to his left and an orange one to his right. The two started to close in, bumping the rusting car.

"Shit." Speed said. "You want to play around? Let's play then." Speed's world seemed to slow, a white outline of a car clearly in his vision. Find the balance point, the angle, the needed speed. And... there! The world sped up, as Speed hit the breaks and moved the gear shift, moving out from between the two cars, behind, spinning around backwards which gave him the momentum to get side to side with the orange car. He kept moving in reverse, he could hear the man at the speakers saying something, but he was too focused on the race.

"I... haven't seen a trick like this since..." Spritle couldn't believe his eyes, not managing to finish the statement. Speed managed to overtake several cars, gaining up on X.

"No way..." X said with wide eyes, glancing at the rear-view mirror.

"No way!" Conor exclaimed. "Did you see that? That's Speed Racer's move!" He looked iver to Lucy, who was staring at the track.

"Is he insane!" Lucy questioned. Speed now right behind X, he was determined.

"That was my fathers move!" X said, disbelief and slight anger in his voice. Speed kept his eyes on the road, looking for the right moment to move. X slightly moved to one side, which was enough for Speed. He pulled the hand brake and turned the wheel, managing to skid past X and claim first place. Speed smiled like an idiot, however he knew he had to be careful, that skidding had definitely damaged the tires.

"Son of a-" He felt the car slightly wobble as loose pieces started to peel off, even the 2nd mirror broke off. Next followed the spoiler, breaking off on one side, then breaking completely. "Just a bit more..." The hood flipped up, covering Speed's view. "MOTHER-" Speed veered left and right, trying to keep his heart from exploding. He heard a car pass him, but thankfully it wasn't X. "This is how it's gonna be?" He quickly pulled the brake again, spinning around to let the hood fall off completely, then turning back to continue. He looked back, relaxing when he saw that the flying hood didn't hit anyone, and the one person it almost did managed to move. Speed hit the acceleration again.

"Time to get serious." X thought, clicking one of the many buttons. Flames erupted from his exhaust as the car sped up intensely. He easily passed Speed, and hit the car in first place. The dark pink car was spinning in the air, heading straight for Speed. Time seemed to slow down again, as Speed took in the situation, where the car was, where to move, when, how quickly. Time went back to normal, he hit the acceleration, the car flying over him and landing safely but off the track. "That will slow him down."

"Nice try, asshat. I'm not easy to take down." Speed growled. Once again gaining up on X, and passing him. Speed noted that the car won't make it much farther. "Just hold on for a bit more." He felt the car shake. "PLEASE!" All 4 tires fell of one by one, and he started to skid in a circle on the ground. He screamed as he braced himself for the crash.

"Later!" X waved, and crossed the finish line. The old car kept skidding until it reached the finish line, almost toppling to the side before stopping right before it. The outside of the car was completely covered in smoke, and Speed was holding his breath. The whole crowd was shocked.

"Oh no! Speed!" Conor yelled, pure worry written on his and Lucy's face. 2 smaller water trucks drove up to the car, drenching it. Spritle watched with horror from above. Speed kept kicking the door until it gave out, the whole door falling off the hinges and landing a good 2 meters away. He practically jumped out of the car, ripping off his helmet. He fell into a coughing fit, then stood up as straight as he could to face the crowd.

"Stephen is all right folks! He is all right! What an exciting race!" The man over the speakers said, and the crowd cheered. X walked up to Speed, a smirk on his face.

"Not bad, kid. Where'd you learn that move?" Speed didn't reply for a moment.

"I'm... not sure. I just did it." X frowned.

"Yea right, you've seen my father do it a million times. Only he did it better."

"He's Speed Racer, of course he did." Speed stated blankly, his voice slightly hoarse from the smoke.

"Exactly. And you're not." X pointed an accusing finger at Speed, then walked off.

"Asshole..." Speed whispered.

"That was amazing!" Conor ran up to him, Lucy right behind him.

"Well... Not exactly..." Speed began.

"I wouldn't say amazing. You cut the corners on the outside instead of the inside. And driving backwards was crazy and dangerous and-" Conor stepped between the two.

"Take it easy Lucy, it's only his first race." Lucy looked back at Speed, shoulders dropping down.

"Good race. But I can still make you better!"

"Thanks...I guess?"

\---

"He'll need a lot of work." Spritle said.

"He clearly has Speed Racer's energy. And you know how dangerous that can be." A woman in a motorized wheelchair said.

"Yes, but you remember that Speed Racer was a few years older than that young man when he first used the 180 reverse thrust."

"He could've injured the other students with that ridiculous maneuver." Aniskov added.

"Considering his car was falling apart at the seams, I think he did what was necessary to win the race."

"Are you showing him special treatment, simply because he used a move and has a nickname that matches to your bother?" Aniskov asked.

"I'm going to pretend that I didn't hear that." Spritle replied, anger barely slipping into his voice.

\---

Hours later after the race, near the tracks, the trio was taking a break near the on track classroom. Speed finally managed to unpack fully, grab his things and even explore the school a tad bit. He now leaned on the wall, arms crossed as Lucy spoke.

"Professor Winn is the coolest. I mean she knows everything, and I mean everything there is on defensive driving."

"Hence she's the defensive driving teacher." Conor added. Speed shifted slightly.

"Is she anything like Aniskov?" He asked, expecting a yes.

"No, she's totally nice." Lucy told him.

"Unless Professor Aniskov, who has off-road rage." Conor said. Speed snorted a laugh. The bell rung as students began walking to the classroom, the three deciding to do the same.

\---

"Good afternoon, class." Professor Winn faced the class. "For you new students, I'm professor Winn. I will be your defensive driving teacher. As you can notice, we have some of our 2nd and 3rd year students here with us." Speed glanced back towards X and Annalise, who sat 1 row away from him. "They're here as teacher aid, so show the due respect." At the same moment, Jesse flicked the back of Conor's head. "I'm sure many of you have witnessed our new student Stephen's race this morning." Annalise and X roller their eyes. "And particularly, the 180 reverse thrust. The signature move of the school's founder." Several eyes shot towards Speed, who only awkwardly waved.

"Hi."

"Stephen, can you tell us where you learned that move?" Professor Winn asked.

"It actually came to me on the spot. I don't know where I learned it." Speed replied. Murmurs were shared between the students, and Speed hated it, the low voices reminded him of- no. Not now.

"Of course he doesn't know." X said, nonchalantly.

"I simply reacted to the situation." Speed didn't elaborate after that.

"Yeah, right." Jesse said.

"It's going to take a lot more than one trick to beat me, newbie." X stated, leaning over his desk to get to Speed's line of view. Professor Winn put up a hand.

"Alright then!" She said with an authoritative voice, all the students quickly quieting down. "Let's get started. We are going to talk about skid control today." Speed turned his focus to the Professor, ignoring X's glare.

\---

"The car situation is still a major problem." Conor stated.

"No shit, Sherlock." Speed mumbled.

"Yeah but what are we going to do about it? What even can we do?" Speed sighed.

"I'm way too beat to think about that right now. Could we do it later? I'm running on insane instinct." The door to the room opened, Spritle entering.

"Instincts can only get you so far in a race, Stephen." He said.

"Headmaster Spritle." All 3 said simultaneously, Chim-Chim saluting the headmaster.

"Of course without a car you're not gonna get much of an education."

"Same thoughts here, Sir." Speed replied.

"Well then," Spritle opened the door. "Come with me."  
  
\---  
  
Standing in front of a junk yard, the 3 were already mentally mapping out what to do.

"Normally, I don't do this, Stephen. However," He put a hand on Stephen's shoulder, who tried not to flinch. "You impressed me with your performance today. I'm expecting great things from you. Don't let me down."

"I won't sir." Speed said. Spritle smiled and put a hand to the scanner. Soon enough the door began to creak open.

"Be careful in there, boys." He turned to Lucy. "I expect you to keep Conor and Stephen out of trouble."

"I will, sir." Lucy replied. The three exchanged glances before racing in to search.

"I found a piece of an engine." Speed yelled from one area.

"Found an axle piece." Lucy pulled on a large but intact piece.

"With the amount of things here, and all 3 of us working on it, we will make a car in no time." Speed said. Chim-Chim grabbed a small cog, then screeched when a whole bunch of parts fell on top of him. Connor helped him out, then turned to Speed.

"Don't you think it's kinda weird?" Speed paused, looking at Conor.

"Which part?"

"The key, the bandanna, Speed Racer's signature move. 3 coincidences in a row?" Speed kept silent, he had thought about it before, a small fantasy from when he got his nickname, then a genuine question.

"No, it had to be lucky. I saw the move somewhere for sure," he raised his left arm to show the bandanna on his wrist. "And these are everywhere." He stood up, then froze as a green light and a soft hum came from around his chest. "What the..." Lucy ran up to the two.

"What's that?" Conor simply pointed, as he was at a loss of words. Speed grabbed the key from under his shirt and off his neck. It was glowing brightly, almost like a lantern.

"Okay... that's weird."

"Your key is humming." Lucy said.

"And glowing." Conor added. The three simply stared, dumbfounded. The ground around them was quickly covered in a green grid pattern with some red squares, stretching all around the salvage yard. "Cool! It's a three-dimensional holographic projection."

"It has to be a map, and there's 3 directions." Speed's eyes lit up with stars, it was slowly clicking into place. "Each take 1 path." Speed ran one way, Lucy another and Conor a third. Lucy and Conor went around the same spot, Speed going opposite. Speed stopped in front of a large pile, the key's glow turning to red.

"Guys! I think I found something!" Speed's heartbeat quickened, and he began digging around, moving the heavier objects with no problem. A odd shape was sticking out, and it only made Speed more determined. It was all clicking together, the bandanna, the move, even the key makes sense. He finally pushed the final piece out of the way and gasped, stepping back. In front of him was a odd shaped white hood of a car, a gigantic red M written across.

"That- that's part of the Mach 5!" Conor said, out of breath and in a happy shock. "That's-"

"Speed Racer's car." Speed said, a bit smile on his face and tears forming. There was no doubt about it, he was supposed to find this.


	3. The Very Beginning - Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2nd Chapter is here and out! 
> 
> Triggers: Panic Attack and Implied Abuse.
> 
> (Apologies for any spelling mistakes, I will fix them if I find them.)

Last time on Speed Racer...

"You really are a fan. Are your parents into racing?" She asked. All happy thoughts that Speed had immediately crashed and burned, he froze, his face becoming dark. 

\---

"That was my fathers move!" X said, disbelief and slight anger in his voice. Speed kept his eyes on the road, looking for the right moment to move. 

\---

"Stephen is all right folks! He is all right! What an exciting race!" The man over the speakers said, and the crowd cheered.

\---

"That- that's part of the Mach 5!" Conor said, out of breath and in a happy shock. "That's-"

"Speed Racer's car." Speed said, a bit smile on his face and tears forming. There was no doubt about it, he was supposed to find this.

\---

A screen displaying a blue car on a track showed the car reaching a turn. "Now Stephen, can you tell me how fast this car needs to be going to survive this turn?" Professor Winn asked. Speed stared at the large screen, thinking. 

"Um..." He hated not managing to figure out what to do. A beep began as a warning that it was close to the edge.

"Come on, Stephen. Your car is about to crash." The choice of words made Speed uncomfortable, but he brushed it away. The beeping became more rapid, and it annoyed Speed more than he thought it would.

"And so will his grade." Annalise commented, laughing along with the twins. Lucy and Conor just looked at them with disgust, Speed giving her a side eye. 

"Time's up" Professor Winn said as the car in the simulation skidded and crashed. "What's your answer?"

"The answer is uhh..." The classroom door opened, Spritle, Zazic and his assistant, Stanford entered.

"Sorry to disturb your class, Professor Winn." Spritle interrupted. "I'm just showing Mr Zazic around the new facilities he donated to the school."

"Oh please, it was nothing. Just 13 or 14 buildings." Zazic chuckled. "Hi, Honey." He said to Annalise.

"Oh, well, you're just in time to watch our new student Stephen answer a question on race velocity." Miss Winn turned to Speed. "Go ahead Stephen." Speed blanked, staring at Professor Winn, then to Zazic and back to Professor Winn. He still didn't figure out the answer, and this Zazic guy was giving him the chills. 

"Well... that's fascinating." Zazic said sarcastically. "Looks like I need to donate more books." He added. "Come along, Stanford."

"Uhm... Thank you, Professor Winn." Spritle said, before leaving with Zazic and Stanford.

"Well, Stephen?" Just as Professor Winn asked, the bell rung.

"Sorry Professor, but that's the bell." He said, before bolting off.

"I'll be expecting your answer!" Professor Winn yelled as Speed ran out of the classroom.

\---

Back at the garage, Speed was trying to tighten a lug nut in the now mostly rebuilt Mach 5, Chim-Chim doing the same on the other side. The former was still surprised that the Mach 5 parts were at the salvage yard. "God, the classes here are so much tougher than I expected." Speed said. 

"Yeah, you waited in Winn's class." Conor walked up next to Speed. Speed sighed loudly.

"I was only up there because you went all Mach 5 mad on me!" He sighed. "And that's not even mentioning the rumors of the Mach 6." Conor looked away sheepishly. Lucy appeared from from underneath the car, laying on a repair board. 

"I can help, Stephen. Just give me 6 hours of your free time each day." Speed looked down towards her.

"6 hours? Each day?" He snorted. "Why not make it 9? Because that seems fucking reasonable." He said sarcastically. Lucy rolled her eyes with a smile before rolling back underneath the car. "At least we have a good 2 hours before Aniskov's class. There's no way that we would've managed to put the car back together in such a short period of time." 

"Speed, help me out with this." Conor said, clicking a button as a metal chain lowered the Mach 5 engine. Conor and Speed both kept the engine from turning around wrongly, and let it set down. 

"Do you wanna go over Professor Winn's question?" Lucy asked from underneath the car.

"I'm going with no on that." Speed replied.

"Good, so we can talk about how weird it is that Speed just happened to be left at an orphanage." Speed crossed his arms, he didn't want to even think about that place again. "With Speed Racer's red bandanna and a key that fits the Mach 5." Conor turned to Speed, who walked away to grab something. "Face it, dude. There's a chance that you might be-"

"Will you stop!" Speed yelled, harsher than he intended. Conor quickly shut up, staring at his friend in worry. "That place was a shit-hole and I don't want to think about it. They gave me the mere basics, and nothing else! Hell, even if it's plausible that I'm related, it would be crazier than you being related to Darth Vader." Conor didn't even bother making a joke, it wasn't the time. However Chim-Chim slapped a bucket on Conor's head, who yelled in surprise. 

"Chim-Chim! Now's not the time!" He tried to step forwards, only to step onto the repair board and falling down. 

"Way to go, Dark Lord." Speed said blankly, shaking his head. "Is everything finished?"

"Should be." Lucy said, who was cleaning her hands with a rag. "Ready to test it?" Speed nodded, grabbing the key from around his neck. 

"Moment of truth." He opened the car, sat down and mentally braced himself. Speed put the key to the ignition... and it fit perfectly. The engine roared to life as Speed stared. The silence was deafening, until Speed smiled with such genuine emotion and laughed. "I-it fits! It actually fits!" 

"The chances of that... this is incredible!" Conor exclaimed, giving a high-five to Lucy. Speed felt tears forming again, it couldn't be true... but it happened. They found the Mach 5, they fixed it, and the key that Speed was given is perfect. Then realization struck.

"Wait... but if..." Speed's face dropped to horror and hurt. Conor and Lucy both noticed the obvious change. "If... I was left by myself..." He hated what he was thinking of. Why on earth was Speed left at an orphanage, when he could have had a normal life. 

"Speed?" Conor asked, but Speed didn't reply. Hell, he didn't hear Conor at all. Speed's mind was going into shambles. For 16 years he was left at a hellhole that treated everyone like crap, as if they were rats. For 16 years he was all alone, without a family, without friends. He had no childhood. 16 years filled with nothing but horrible memories and things that nobody should experience.

"16 years..." He mumbled, eyes wide with anger. "16 years and all for WHAT!" Speed yelled, hitting the wheel. Tears were falling like waterfalls. His voice was shaky, his whole body trembling. Speed's grip on the wheel tightened, his hands shaking from the intensity. Speed began hyperventilating, and he couldn't stop it. He was pretty sure he could hear his own heartbeat. 

"Stephen!" Lucy opened the door, trying to get his attention. Speed was completely zoned out of reality. Lucy put a hand on his shoulder, only for Speed to visibly, and violently, flinch away. He began pounding on the wheel with both fists, and screamed as his crying turned to loud sobs, his words completely unintelligible. "Get Headmaster Spritle, NOW!" She commanded. Conor bolted out of the garage in a second without a second thought. Lucy turned her attention back to Speed. She quickly grabbed a blanket from the couch in the room and calmly wrapped it around Speed's shaking shoulders. "Stephen, I need you to listen." Speed was still sobbing, but became quieter, finally listening to Lucy, his head leaning on the wheel that he was still gripping.

"I'm sorry." He croaked out, before hiccuping. "I'm so sorry."

"Hey... It's okay." She slowly put a hand on his lower arm. "Can you breathe slowly for me?" Speed took a deep, but shaky, breath, then exhaled. "There. Just keep doing that. Can you get out of the car?" Speed nodded, then dragged himself out of the seat. When he stood up, his legs were visibly trembling and his eyes were red and puffy. He sat down onto the floor, pulling his knees close to him, then wrapping himself with the blanket. Lucy sat down next to him, shifting closer and wrapping one arm around Speed in hopes to comfort him. Speed didn't speak, instead he leaned into the touch that felt foreign, yet so welcoming.

\---

"That was a charming little tour, Headmaster." Zazic said. "In fact, I have a little present for you to commemorate the completion of the new facilities. Stanford." Stanford stepped forward and placed the box on top of Spritle's desk. Spritle took the box and opened it. Revealing a... statue of Mr Zazic.

"Oh. Uh... Thank you so much." Spritle said with uncertainty. "The virtual track has been activated, care for a look?" 

"Ah, delightful. Stanford, come." 

"Wait! You can't go in there!" The woman outside yelled, it was only a second later that the door was slammed open, with Conor the reason why.

"Conor?" Spritle asked. "What are you doing here?" Conor was still wheezing from having to run all they way from the garage to the Headmaster's office. 

"I'm- sorry Headmaster Spritle." He tried to calm his breathing before continuing. "It's- Stephen." Spritle shot out of his seat. 

"Conor, I really hope this is necessary-"

"He just had a breakdown! Is that a good reason?" Spritle glanced over to Zazic. 

"Thank you so much for your time Mr Zazic, I hope this isn't a big trouble for you."

"I'll be fine. We'll wait for you at the overview balcony." Zazic replied as he left the room. Spritle placed the statue on the shelf, then turned to Conor.

"What happened?"

"Just follow me." Conor mentally braced himself to run all around the school again. Quickly, the two were off.

\---

Back at the garage, Speed was still cocooned in the blanket, head resting on his knees. A knock caused Lucy to look at the door.

"Who is it?"

"Conor, I have Headmaster Spritle here." Lucy turned to Speed, who only nodded softly underneath the blanket.

"Okay. Come in, door's unlocked." The door opened, Conor being the first one to enter, shortly followed by Spritle. The latter stood in shock at... everything. He shook his head, then walked over to the still trembling Speed, kneeling in front of him. He was the priority right now.

"Speed?" Conor was the first to speak.

"It's Stephen." Speed replied weakly. 

"Right, Stephen. Are you okay?" Speed raised his head from his knees, revealing still his red eyes and dried tears. In his hand, he was clutching the red bandanna as if his life depended on it.

"As good as it can get." He turned his attention to Spritle. "For how long did you know?"

"I need you to be more specific, Stephen." Speed scoffed.

"We just 'accidentally' found the fucking Mach 5. And the key I was given fit perfectly. So I'll make this clear." He shifted away from Lucy's half hug to stare at Spritle. "Is. Speed. Racer. My. Dad." He said. Spritle looked at the floor, guilt clear on his face.

"Yes. He is. I was unsure before, but now I'm convinced. You two look so similar, and you have the Mach 5 key." Speed's cheeks were covered in a new layer of tears.

"Unbelievable... that motherfucker-" He quickly stood up, regretting it as he leaned on the car with a groan. Lucy and Conor were quickly at his side, checking if he's okay. " I forgot how bad panic attacks get." Spritle felt as if a he got shot through the heart at that statement. 

"Stephen." He began. "I am so sorry for what you had to go through." Speed looked at Spritle.

"What about X? What will you tell him?" He asked. "He's my brother, right?" Speed looked at the Mach 5. "And I really don't want to drive out with that." 

"You head to your classes for now. Afterwards, if you could come to my office, I'll talk to you both." Spritle said. Speed nodded. He took the blanket and threw it on the couch. 

"Let's go guys."

\---

Outside on the tracks, a boy with askew glasses and hair messed up stood next to a car that was, thankfully, in one piece. 

"Terrible Larry, just terrible." Aniskov commented, arms crossed and eyebrows furrowed. Larry sheepishly looked to the ground. "Can anyone tell me what he did wrong?"

"Being born." Annalise replied, followed by the twins laughing.

"Thank you Miss Zazic." Aniskov said sternly, then turning to the rest of the class. "Now does anyone have something useful to say?" 

"The turn was too harsh and done way too late, mixed with too much pressure on the brakes, which caused him to skid into an awkward angle." Speed's voice came from behind Aniskov, the latter turning around. "You could even hear the screeching of the tires." 

"And why are you late, young man?"

"Car troubles, managed to finish it off. Then had a minor setback." Lucy and Conor looked at each other due to the casual use of a 'minor' setback. Speed looked to the rest of the class, then whispered. "If you have to know, ask Headmaster Spritle."

"Very well, you must pay close attention to the rest of the class then." He turned to the class. "As Stephen said, yes, the turn was to harsh and done too late." As Professor Aniskov continued to talk, Speed noticed X staring at him. After just having a panic attack, this was the last thing Speed needed right now. He gave a death glare to X, who quickly turned his attention away. 

\---

"Are you sure you want to be here?" Lucy sat down next to Speed on the couch.

"Yes." Speed replied, blankly. Speed kept staring at the Mach 5, his thoughts a complete mess. "I just don't know what to think off..." He waved both arms at the car. "This."

"It's crazy. We know." Conor said from behind the hood, still fixing any last minute details. "Good thing though that we didn't bring the Mach 5 to the track, some things were still loose." 

"I still have to get used to it, unless I find an alternative." The sound of the door caused the three to pause.

"What... is this." At the door stood a wide eyed X, along with Annalise and the twins.

"Is God seriously testing me with you right now?" Speed groaned. "What do you want X?"

"What do you mean what do I want? Why do you have my father's car?" He demanded, taking a few threatening steps towards Speed's direction. 

"That's so not cool." Annalise piped up. "Are you going to let him get away with driving your dad's car? Even my dad will hear about this."

"I wouldn't let him drive mom's scooter." One of the twins commented.

"What the hell did you do? Did you steal it?" Speed jumped off of the couch.

"What?" 

"You heard me, you have no right to drive my father's car." X scoffed.

"We found it at the scrapyard and rebuilt it ourselves." He crossed his arms. "If the Mach 5 was so fucking important to you, why did you go look for it yourself?" Speed said, pointing an accusing finger at X.

"Point given." Conor said. 

"Stay out of this, tailpipe." Annalise said to Conor.

"Back off, Spoiled Princess." Speed shot back.

"How about you show some respect, newbie." X stepped forwards. 

"I will. When I find someone who deserves it." Speed said, emphasizing on the word deserved.

"You talk big game, kid. How about we settle this with a race, tonight." Speed glanced at the Mach 5 uncertainly.

"Fine." 

"There's no access to the track at night." Lucy piped up.

"There is for me." Annalise said proudly. "After all, my father built the track. I know all the activation codes." Lucy and Conor turned back to Speed, who was still staring at X with silent rage.

\---

Annalise was typing away at the control panel, the lights around turning on. "Since I got us in, I get to pick the course and I get to race too because-" 

"Because your daddy built the track." Lucy and Speed said at the same time. 

"We know." Lucy finished.

"Let's just get this over with." Speed said, heading for the Mach 5.

"Newbie's got attitude. Let's see if he likes the Eliminator." Annalise set up the track, and evil grin forming on her lips.

At Spritle's office, one of the cameras turned on, revealing the race that was about to take place. 

"What?" Spritle asked nobody in particular with horror. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. The Mach 5, the Shooting Star and the Spoiled Brat lined up at the starting line. He quickly jumped out of the chair, running. Unknown to him, a hidden camera was still recording his every move. 

Back at the track, Speed was getting anxious, but pushed it down. Mere hours before he had a full panic attack because of this very car.

"Stephen, bad news. I didn't manage to completely fix the Mach 5's combat system." Conor said through the comm.

"What!" 

"I didn't think you were going to race tonight!" Before Speed could reply, three shark like cars passed by the Mach 5. "What the hell are those?" Lucy's face appeared at the comm a moment later.

"Combat cars. They're computer driven monsters with the AI of great white sharks. And just as dangerous." Speed's eyes widened at the last part. Lucy looked away in thought. "Though I thought they got rid of them, too much of a risk." The three combat cars aligned next to each other, away from the racers. Annalise on the other hand didn't seem bothered by the metal monsters. 

"Hello Honey." Zazic's voice came from Annalise's comm.

"What is it, dad?" She said, annoyed.

"Listen closely. I want Stephen and the Mach 5 destroyed. Do you understand?" Zazic has been caught up on the situation earlier. While having a bad reaction to the car existing, he quickly composed himself to create a plan.

"You called for that? I'm going to trash him anyway."

"That's my girl. But you know what I mean." Annalise rolled her eyes. 

"Yeah, yeah. I'll make sure." The comm closed. "You're about to eat my dust, Speedbump." 

"Keep trash talking, Princess."

"Pay attention Speed." X said, emphasis on the nickname. "I don't want you to destroy my fathers car." Speed didn't reply, instead kept his eyes forwards as he made sure everything was in place. The count down began.

3\. Speed revved the engine.

2\. X grabbed the gear shift.

1\. Annalise smirked.

Go! All three cars shot out a second later, soon followed by the combat cars. They all sped up, each combat car locked on one of the racers. 

"Do it now!" Zile said from the comm.

"It's too soon." Annalise replied.

"Annalise, I said now!" All the cars passed by the gate, the gate opening and turning on, the blue glow illuminating the track. Moments later, all of them entered the virtual track, the sudden light shift slightly blinding Speed. One of the combat cars drove up to the left of Speed, Annalise coming to his right. 

"That's how its going to go, huh?" Speed noted to himself. Spinning spikes protruded from the combat car's wheels, slowly moving towards the Mach 5. Speed hit the brakes, disappearing from view.

"Hey!" Annalise then semi-shouted as the combat car hit her, then kept pushing towards the edge of the cliff. All while Speed just watched. Outside the track, Lucy, Conor and the twins all stared at the screen. Conor covered Chim-Chim's eyes, while the twins stared with worry. One final push, and the Spoiled Brat was sent flying off of the road then out of the track, skidding. 

"Aah! Annalise! Hold on!" Both twins yelled as they ran to the car. Lucy and Conor simply looked at eachother.

"Out in 10 seconds." Lucy said. "A new record." Annalise was seething as she threw off her helmet. 

"Well, those driving tutors sure payed off." Zile said blanky. Annalise snapped towards the comm.

"You made me move too soon!" She said, clenching her fists. "And now Speed made me look like a dork! He's gonna pay." Zazic smiled.

"Oh, he'll pay." 

Back in the virtual track, X was taking the lead with one of the cars after him, Speed behind the first combat car and two behind him. Speed kept his attention on both the road and the cars behind him. 

"Stephen! Be careful on the turns!" Lucy said. A moment later, Speed entered a tunnel, one of the combat cars gaining on him. "They're right on your tail!"

"I see them. I'll be careful." Speed hit the acceleration, his heartbeat becoming faster.

"X." Lucy appeared on X's comm. "I know you can hear me." X didn't reply. "You need to push further ahead!" 

"Save it! I know what I'm doing." Just as he said that, the combat car behind him shot a weird orb onto the car. Followed by several more. X hit the acceleration, the car struggling. Speed saw this, and debated whether he should so something or not.

"They're hitting you with weights!" 

"I know!" X yelled. Speed sighed, speeding up next to the combat car. X may be an ass, but he's still his brother.

"Hang on, X! I got it!" Speed quickly bumped into the car, causing it to flip and land upside down. Speed smiled as the large monster finally stopped.

"I don't need your help!" Speed rolled his eyes as they entered a tunnel again, the two combat cars left slowly closing Speed towards the corner. 

"Ah shit." The one behind him started trying to grab onto the car with metal teeth, while the other kept closing in, causing the Mach 5 to drive along the curved wall.

"Stephen! What are you doing!" Lucy questioned, almost shrieking.

"He's gonna crash!" Both Conor and Chim-Chim grabbed at their heads, shocked and confused. The world seemed to slow again, as Speed assessed the situation, outlining the cave. He had two options, hit the acceleration and hope for the best or... drive up the wall. He could go all the way up, but decided against it. Far too risky.

"Tell Professor Winn I figured out her question. However," He sped up the Mach 5. "I won't be testing it out." He drove up the wall, then back down once he was far enough. 

"Time to get rid of that car once and for all." Zazic said, typing a few things. 

"Can those cars piss off?" Speed said, hitting the acceleration again. He exited the tunnel, only for a large beam to protrude out of the ground. He quickly hit the brakes, but was then hit by the combat car. The Mach 5 hit both the beam head on and was gnawed at from behind by the metal teeth. 

"And that's how you put a nuisance to bed." Zile said, cracking his knuckles. Moments later, loose pieces of the car were shot out of the virtual track, a still semi intact piece and Speed along with it. It spun in the air for a bit, then hit the ground with a loud metallic thud, the car laying on it's side. 

"Stephen!" Lucy and Conor ran up to the mangled car, searching for Speed. The latter kept kicking and striking at the bent door above him, praying to get out. The door gave out, and Speed shakily dragged himself out, grunting as he fell and hit the floor, helmet falling off. Lucy and Conor both helped Speed stand up, starting to walk away from the wreck. Speed got back to his senses.

"Are you okay?" Lucy asked. Speed nodded, as he tried to walk on his own.

"Just got surprised." He took another step, and froze. He let go of Lucy and Conor, praying as turned back to the wreckage. "No, no, no, no, NO, NO, NO!" Each one was louder than the last. Speed ran to the side of the mangled car, falling to his knees. Despite hating his dad, this WAS the Mach 5, after all, and X was going to kill him. 

"You trashed my father's car!" X yelled from behind him, stomping over to Speed. Speed snapped his head towards X.

"I also saved your life, asshole!" Speed yelled back.

"As if I really needed your help!" Speed shot up, debating whether to smash X's nose in. Both were in an intense staring match, until a voice cut through.

"You're both about to need some help." Spritle stated, staring at the two. Speed's mind blanked.

 _"You're both going to need some help." A faceless woman in a long black dress told Speed and another young kid standing next to him, both barely reaching the woman's lower torso. "You've both caused trouble that won't go unpunished."_ Speed snapped himself back to reality.

"Um... hi, Headmaster." One of the twins said.

"Annalise, Conor, Lucy, Jesse and Jared, all of you go back to your rooms." He demanded. 

"But Headmaster, we-" Conor tried explaining.

"Rooms. Now." The five left swiftly without another word. Spritle turned back to X and Speed. "Now which one of you is going to tell me what happened here?" 

"Nothing Headmaster. Just a friendly little race." X said, placing a hand on Speed's shoulder. "Right Speed?" Speed lightly pushed X hand off, trying not to frown. 

"Save it! You two clean up this mess now!" 

"What! Why should I clean up?" X questioned. 

"Not another word! I want to see you both in my office, first thing in the morning!" He said, raising his hand. Speed blanked again.

_"It was my fault, Miss -̵̢̠̯̟̅̌̂͗͝-̴̟̱͚̦͕̗̠̋̑́͂̋̊-̷̞͓͈̄-̷͔̲͕͎̠͂̀̕-̶͚̫̂̈́." Speed said, looking at the ground._  
_"Not another word, you little nuisance." Speed looked up, the woman towering over him. She rose her arm, hand outstretched. And swung down._

Speed flinched, one arm protecting his face. Both X and Spritle seemed surprised and confused by the action. After a moment of completely silence, Speed dared to open his eyes, the same hand shakily reaching his cheek. He looked at the two.

"I'll get going." He quickly walked off before anyone could speak. Spritle and X exchanged looks before the latter left as well. Spritle watched as the two disappeared from view.

\---

The mangled Mach 5 stood in the garage as the last piece, a tire, was thrown to the pile. The tire bounced off of the metal and onto the floor.

"Done." Speed said. He popped a few bones as he was the one carrying and dragging some of the heavier pieces. 

"This isn't over yet, Speed." X said, arms crossed and staring dead on. 

"Seriously, what is your fucking problem?" During their entire argument, neither noticed the small camera that was set up near one of the ceiling corners.

"You are! I'm out of here." Just as X was leaving, Lucy and Conor appeared at the doorway, X pushing aggressively past them.

"What was that all about?" Speed let out a large breath he didn't realize he was holding.

"I screwed up." He flopped onto the couch. "I screwed up badly and I just destroyed the Mach 5." He turned to the pile of metal. "Look at it!" 

"I know! How could you destroy this beautiful-" Conor started saying, but was interrupted by Lucy.

"Conor! Really?" Conor quickly composed himself.

"I mean it's just a car. It's not like it was famous." Conor began to cry dramatically. Speed, not wanting to listen to this, buried his face in his hands, groaning. A moment later, Chim-Chim landed on Speed's lap, hugging him. 

"Shit- Conor, your monkey is hugging me." Conor looked up.

"Friends hug, Stephen." Speed grimaced for a second. "And Chim-Chim feels this because he loved the Mach 5 too!" Speed simply grabbed Chim-Chim and pushed him away. The monkey jumped over to Conor, who was crying again. 

"Oh for crying out loud." Speed dragged a hand over his face, then paused when he heard an odd noise. He reached into his pocket, where the key was glowing again. "This again? What is it this time." He didn't want to deal with this, so he threw the key at the wreckage. It kept buzzing loudly. 

"Should we check it out?" Speed really didn't have the energy or motivation to search now.

"Tomorrow." He stood up and headed to the door. "Goodnight."

\---

The next morning, Speed was already at the office, sitting outside on the bench. He was deep in thought, leg bouncing. He turned his attention to the oncoming footsteps.

"Morning." He said blankly.

"Do me a favor and don't talk to me." X sat on the opposite side of the bench. "Let's just get this over with." Speed didn't reply, but secretly flipped him off.

"You two, get in here, please." Spritle said from the small speaker. The two quickly stood up and entered. They made their way to the desk and sat down opposite of Spritle. The entire thing being recorded by the golden Zile statue. 

"I'm sorry, Headmaster, this was completely my fault." X seemed surprised by Speed. "I take full responsibility. But is there a possibility I could get another car?"

"I'm sorry Stephen. But absolutely not. I wish I could help you out more, or change the rules. But I can't do that," He paused. "Not even for my nephew." Speed didn't seem shocked, while X went wide eyed. 

"What!" X asked. Spritle turned to X.

"I always knew my brother hid his second son before disappearing." 

"His second son?" X leaned forwards, halfway off the chair. Speed looked away from X, subconsciously reaching for his sleeves.

"Yes X, you were already known around the world. That made you safe." He turned to Stephen, who kept looking at the floor, trying not to cry and both arms now clawing at his sleeves. 

"But his second son was so young, and your father thought it was best to keep him secret."

"What are you saying?" X asked, looking like a deer caught in headlights.

"Stephen, when you arrived at this school, the similarity was uncanny. I thought... maybe it's possible," He paused again. "I've seen you next to X, and much earlier the business with the key and Mach 5. I was convinced." Speed, now letting a few tears fall, turned to a still shocked X. 

"Nice to meet you, brother." He turned to Spritle. "I'm sorry, I should probably go." He sat up, Spritle didn't reply, but only nodded. Speed quickly walked out, hands digging into his sleeves. 

\---

The entirety of that day and the next morning, X couldn't find Speed at all. Thankfully, there were no classes, otherwise X wouldn't have been able to concentrate. Currently, X was in the common area along with Annalise and the twins. After such a large bombshell, on top of other info, X was barely thinking.

"X, what's wrong?" Annalise asked, poking X in the arm.

"I haven't seen Stephen today at all." Annalise scoffed.

"You mean that dork? Why are you so worried about him?" X didn't reply. After talking with Spritle, or well mostly listening to him, on where Speed was for almost the entirety of his life, X didn't want to torment the guy anymore. Instead, he felt brotherly instinct kick in to protect him. He still didn't have the whole picture of what happened, but it was enough to make him reconsider how the acted. 

_"Orphanages are an odd place. Some better than others. Stephen didn't have that luck, sadly." Spritle told X._

_"What do you mean?"_

_"I shouldn't tell you, as I know Stephen avoids talking about it. But he'll tell you when he wants to." X looked down. "Now, I don't want to keep you here for much longer." X stood up._

_"Cya, Uncle." He started walking to the door._

_"And Xavier," X turned to Spritle. "Avoid calling him Speed, please. He's... not comfortable with it as of now."_

"I can't tell you." 

"Ugh, fine. Mope around then." Annalise shrugged dramatically. X was still deep in thought, when he noticed Lucy and Conor enter the common area. He quickly shot out of his seat, heading for the two.

"Hey, Conor, Lucy." The two stopped and turned to him. 

"What is it X?" Lucy questioned, a hand on her hip. 

"Have you seen Stephen anywhere?" 

"Why do you ask?" Conor jumped in.

"Look, I just want to talk to him. And I haven't seen him at all yesterday or this morning." Lucy thought about it.

"Well, he's not in the cafeteria, we just came from there." 

"He wasn't in our room either. I woke up and he was just gone." Conor added. X dragged a hand over his face. 

"Oh boy... guess I'll have to search around." 

"Good luck with that. Last time we saw him, after being with you and Spritle, he looked quite miffed." Lucy told X. "And if you do find him, and I hear you made him upset, I'll make you regret it, got it? I won't hesitate." She warned. X gulped.

"Got it. Bye." He scurried out of there, ready to search every nook and cranny.

\---

X arrived to the garages, the absolute last place where Speed could be. However, he really wasn't hopeful after searching every place he could think of, the dorms, the library, even the track and everything in between, X was prepared to accept that Speed is avoiding him. Reaching the door, he knocked lightly. With absolutely no response, he slowly opened the door to peek in.

"Stephen? You in here? I want to talk." He paused. Speed was asleep at the desk, laying on top of papers, a wrench on the floor under a hand that was hanging off the desk. Tools were spread out on the table and the floor, along with many pieces of... the Mach 5? X turned his attention to the other side of the garage, gasping quietly. There stood the partly reconstructed skeleton of the Mach 5, with many of the shell pieces surrounding it, two straightened out as much as possible, some partly, most not at all. He also saw the engine pieces, along with many of the interior pieces near the corner in a pile underneath a sight that said "unfixable". He silently made his way to Speed, who was sleeping soundly and softly. 

This entire time, for a whole day, Speed was trying to fix the Mach 5. X didn't know whether to laugh or cry. But why? Was it because Speed couldn't get another car or something else? X shook his head, but right before he was going to leave, low mumbling caught his attention. He turned to Speed, the latter having a scrunched up face.

"Don't you dare." He mumbled, slightly shifting in his sleep. X slowly put a hand on Speed's shoulder, hoping to wake him up. 

"Stephen?" In a split moment, Speed's eyes shot open, with pure intention to attack. He quickly stood up, grabbing X's arm and slamming him onto the desk, painfully locking X's arm behind his back. He quickly let go when he saw who it was.

"X?" X groaned, peeling his face off of the desk. Speed stepped back.

"Ouch, Christ. How strong ARE you?" X asked, rubbing at his arm. "Now I'm really glad you didn't attack me beforehand." 

"Oh shit- I'm so sorry." Speed started apologizing. "I didn't know it was you-"

"Cool it. It's fine. I shouldn't have scared you like that." He turned to the skeleton of the Mach 5. "What were you doing, anyway?" Speed turned to the car, a hand on the back of his head.

"I was trying to fix the Mach 5." He faced X again. "Some of the parts are absolutely wrecked. So I thought if I could at least fix the shell... that it would be an okay apology." X looked at Speed with a raised eyebrow. "I felt horrible for destroying the car. And knowing it was our father's car, it was too special, especially to you." X face turned to surprise.

"You tried to fix it... for me?" Speed nodded, flopping onto the couch. X following. "That's really nice of you." 

"It's the least I could do. I know we're on bad terms as of right now." Speed replied, sinking into the cushions. They we're quiet for a moment.

"Stephen? What happened to you?" Speed sat back up.

"You mean the orphanage?" 

Yeah," X nodded. "But you don't have to talk about it."

Speed took a deep breath before speaking. "It was hell. They made sure you didn't die while there, gave the mere basics and nothing else. Only cared if you looked presentable in front of guests." Speed looked down at his slightly shaking hands, staring at the bandanna that was still tied around his hand. "That place made me like this." He clenched his fist. "A scared teen." X moved next to Speed, a hand hovering over his shoulder. 

"Can I?" Speed gave a silent approval. X put his hand on Speed's shoulder. "Is that why you flinched at the track?" Speed gripped the bandanna. "Did someone hurt you there?"

"She did. The woman that was supposed to take care of us." He sighed shakily. "I'm afraid, X. I'm so fucking afraid. I'm still on edge whether I should be friends with Lucy and Conor." Speed choked out. "They're both nice, but I'm too scared." He laughed weakly. "Hell, I'm scared because of you and Spritle as well." 

"Look," Speed turned to the other. "I barely know Lucy and Conor, but I can tell they don't play around. You can trust them. Lucy even threatened me, saying that she won't hesitate if I hurt you." He sighed. "Now as your older bother, I'll keep you safe. I'm sorry you had to go through all that."

"It wasn't your fault." The two sat in silence, before an odd muffled noise caught their attention. 

"What's that?" Speed stood up. 

"Fuck, I forgot about the key." Speed searched for the origin of the noise, quickly finding it. He saw the key was dragging itself underneath one of the discarded car doors. Speed lifted it with no problem, continuing his search. His eyes landed on a computer chip in a hidden compartment, with a very familiar M written across. 

"What is it?" X asked. Speed grabbed both the chip and the key.

"It looks like a computer chip." He showed it to X. "We need Chim-Chim." Just in that moment, Lucy, Conor and Chim-Chim entered the garage. Speed turned to Chim-Chim. "Come here, Chim-Chim." The monkey hopped over and Speed placed the chip in it's mouth, moving back when Chim-Chim displayed a 3D blueprint above everyone's heads. The blueprint showed a completed engine. All of their eyes went wide. 

"Is that what I think it is?" X asked.

"What?" Zazic stood up from his desk, observing the entire time. 

"It's the engine for the Mach 6." Both Conor and Speed said at the same time. 

"I thought those were only rumors!" Conor said.

"So did I!" Speed replied. X didn't reply, staring at the hologram.

"No!" Zazic yelled, hitting the desk. "I thought I made sure to destroy all of his blueprints!" He paused. "If those kids build the Mach 6, I'm done for!"

"We have to build it!" Conor said. Lucy turned to him.

"I hate to be the flat tire on this tricycle but the Mach 5 is still very much destroyed." Speed turned to the skeleton of the Mach 5, which comically fell apart at that moment. Speed grimaced.

"Well shit, I didn't have much luck to be honest."

"We don't have the parts or the money to build another car." 

"What about the scrap yard? Wasn't that where you found the Mach 5 in the first place?"

"We searched for a tad longer, nothing's usable." Speed replied.

"No way! We just found the most sophisticated engine out there, we have to build it!"

"Lucy's right. Even if we build it, where can we put it?" Chim-Chim stopped the hologram, opening his chest and grabbing a small poster. X took it. "What is it?"

"A poster for a race. And the winner gets all the parts they can carry from the checker flag racing store." Conor patted Chim-Chim on the head.

"Great job Chim-Chim!" 

"Don't get the party started yet," She took the poster. "It says first year students can't enter." 

"I can enter." X said, as the other three looked at him. "What? I can help out. I'm not a first year, I can drive again soon, plus, Stephen is my brother." He smiled at Speed. "I gotta help out." He put a hand out for a fist bump, Speed returning the gesture. 

"Woohoo! Let's get to it!" Conor celebrated. 


End file.
